


Something Worth Standing Down For

by Rererewritten



Category: Supergirl
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-09
Updated: 2017-05-15
Packaged: 2018-10-29 18:43:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,253
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10859838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rererewritten/pseuds/Rererewritten
Summary: Some things are worth fighting for. Some things are worth dying for. For Supergirl, very few things are worth standing down for. For Kara Danvers, Lena Luthor may just be one of those things.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Given the promo for 2x19 with Supergirl and the DEO confronting Rhea in an L-Corp lab with Lena knocked out on the floor, and what we know from spoilers about Lena being forced into an arranged wedding in an upcoming episode, I was wondering how Rhea managed to escape the lab and end up with Lena after the confrontation. This is what I came up with.

 

 

* * *

 

 

Chapter 1

 

“Supergirl, you need to wait,” J’onn’s stern voice sounded in her ear.

“Rhea has Lena,” Kara shook her head as she sped through the air towards the L-Corp laboratory Winn had pinpointed Rhea’s location at, using the energy radiating off of the collection of elements Rhea was using to power the transportation device she had been sent the plans of. Lena had been so excited about the project. She could not wait to share the details with her close friend, and had emailed the blueprints to Kara despite her business partner’s protests.

At first, Kara had wondered about Lena’s new business partner, though she could understand why someone may not trust a reporter to keep such a big project hush until it was ready to be unveiled. At least, she could understand it until she saw Rhea’s name listed amongst the paper work. She may have set a record for her quickest flight to the DEO office from her apartment, breaking more windows than she’d like to think about as she broke the sound barrier.

“Rhea also has kryptonite,” J’onn reminded her.

“Because that warning worked so well the last time someone had Lena,” Alex’s voice crackled over her ear piece, the armor on the DEO van she was riding in making their connection grainy. 

"Supergirl, I am right behind you,” J’onn ignored the comment by the eldest Danvers sister. “And Mon-el is right behind me, and the agents are right behind him. You need to wait for backup.”

“Supergirl, J’onn is right. As soon as you show up, Rhea is going to know that Lena sent you the plans. Our arrival will put her in danger. For now, though, she is safe. You cannot go rushing in alone and unprepared.”

“How do we know that Rhea hasn’t already found out?” Kara pressed, though she slowed her flight speed down as she neared the lab. “How do we know she hasn’t already done something to her? How do we know Lena didn’t already finish the project and Rhea got rid of her?”

“Because she is too valuable, too smart, and she has too many resources. Rhea knows this, and she knows how important she is to you. It’s no secret that Supergirl flew towards a kryptonite bomb in order to save a Luthor. It’s been all over the news ever since it happened, and because of that, it is no surprise that Rhea picked Lena of all people to help her. She is doing it to get back at you.”

“Lena is trying to help people with this project,” Kara defended.

“Yes, and thankfully she’s as much of a nerd about helping people as you are, otherwise she would have never been so excited about the project that she just _had_ to share it with you, and we would all be left thinking she chose to build a transportation device for the entire Daxamite army.”

“Supergirl,” a deep voice near her other ear caused her to jump, even higher, into the air.

“J’onn,” her eyes widened at the Martian beside her before narrowing as she directed her words back towards her sister, “Were you distracting me so that J’onn could catch up?”

“Crsshhh…Sorry, Kara…Crsshh…you’re breaking up…Crsshh…can’t hear you…”

Kara rolled her eyes at her sister’s antics before looking to J’onn.

He sighed heavily as her gaze turned pleading, “I suppose you and I have fought off worse together than one rogue Daxamite.”

Kara gave the briefest of smiles before speeding towards the lab in determination, J’onn trailing right behind her.

\----

The security to get into the lab was tight, and Kara was suddenly glad that J’onn had been able to catch up to her before her arrival. It was much easier to sneak into a laboratory owned by Lena Luthor with an alien that could disguise himself to look exactly like Lena Luthor than without.

When they reached the door to the underground floor of the lab, guided by Winn’s directions in their ears, J'onn's disguise was able to get them past the handprint scanner. His body then transformed back into that of Hank Henshaw, and Kara couldn’t help but shiver in relief.

J’onn gave her a curious look at the reaction.

“It was just weird,” Kara shook her head. “I also need to inform Lena she needs better security.”

“It’s hard to protest against the CEO and Supergirl,” J’onn pointed out.

Kara nodded, not explaining that she had been talking about the handprint scanner. It was an odd idea, to want to inform Lena that she ought to be more paranoid about aliens, considering the multitude of shape shifting varieties out there. There was a hint of irony to it—a Super telling a Luthor that she should be more like, well…a Luthor.

They made it down the final hallway in silence, Kara taking a deep breath as J'onn tried the handle to the door. When it didn't budge, he walked right through it as if it were made of water instead of reinforced steal, and Kara heard a click as it was opened from the inside.

Two sets of eyes slowly turned from J’onn to Kara as she walked through the door. One blazing with anger as the other took her in with a mixture of confusion and joy.

“Supergirl,” Lena greeted, unable to fight down an amused smirk. “I know I’ve suggested you use the door more often, but this isn’t exactly the door I meant. Is there something I can help you with?”

“Yes,” Kara nodded, taking a slow step towards her as J’onn inched towards Rhea, both of them weary of Rhea’s speed, Kara mentally calculating how close she needed to be to Lena in relation to Rhea so that her own speed would be no match for the Daxamite's closer proximity. “Lena, I need you to come with me.”

“Is everything okay?” Lena asked worriedly, moving to join her.

“Lena,” Rhea stepped by her side. “You can’t trust her. She is the one I’ve been telling you about. She is the one that took everything from me.”

Lena glanced at Supergirl before turning to Rhea in confusion, ”You must be mistaken. All Supergirl's done is help people. I've seen it with my own eyes."

"You've seen what she's wanted you to see."

“Lena, please,” Kara pleaded, holding a hand out.

Lena took another step towards her, but in a flash, Rhea was by her side, her hand gripping the younger woman’s shoulder. Lena’s shoulder sagged under the weight of it, and she winced as she tried to pull away from her tight hold.

"Let her go!" Kara yelled at Rhea before racing towards her at full speed.

Rhea shoved Lena to the side, and the CEO’s head hit the cement floor with a sickening crack just as Kara barreled into Rhea, slamming her into a pillar and knocking over a set of shelves. Kara’s head turned towards the shelves to make sure they hadn’t fallen on her friend, and Rhea took the opportunity to connect a heavy punch to Kara’s jaw. The superhero stumbled back, and J’onn stepped forward as a group of security guards burst in through a back door. Kara shook her head to clear the spinning of her vision and she crowded over Lena’s limp body, raising her cape around them as a round of bullets rained around them.

“Stop, you fools!” Rhea yelled. “You will destroy it!”

The gunfire ceased, and Rhea kicked J’onn away forcefully before grabbing Supergirl by the back of the neck and pulling her away from Lena. The security guards ran towards J’onn, and Kara kicked back behind her, landing a blow to Rhea’s stomach, forcing her to let go. She turned around and flew back at her, raising her in the air by the collar of her dress, and slamming her back against the pillar. Once, twice, before Rhea unsheathed the kryptonite dagger tucked into her dress, causing Kara to stumble.

She raised the dagger, slicing easily through Supergirl’s suit and into the flesh of her arm, causing her to cry out in pain as she let her go, and they both fell to the ground. Rhea raised the dagger once more, and J’onn broke free from the guards, tackling her to the ground.

"Enough!" Mon-el called out as he raised a gun, aiming it at his mother as he walked into the room.

“My son,” Rhea smiled as J’onn rolled away, and she pushed herself to her feet. “So nice of you to join us today.”

“It’s over, Mother,” he shook his head.

Kara held her injured arm to her chest as she stood shakily.

“Are you okay?” J’onn asked.

“Lena--”

“Is okay,” he said, before tapping his head in response to Kara’s confused look. “Her brain is fine. Everything is working as it should be. She’s simply unconscious.”

Kara nodded, eyeing the standoff wearily as she took a careful step towards the unconscious body on the ground, trying not to draw attention to herself.

“It is far from over,” Rhea shook her head. “Because our work is complete. I have the final piece for the portal, thanks to the eager young Luthor, here.”

“You manipulated her,” Kara ground out.

“I did,” Rhea nodded, kicking at Lena’s hand on the ground. “And it was painfully easy for someone that is supposed to be so smart.”

Kara stiffened, “Yet _you_ were the one that needed her help.”

“You’re coming with us,” Mon-el informed as a group of DEO agents entered the room behind him. Alex stepped forward, wielding a set of specially made handcuffs.

Kara walked over to take them from her, explaining, “You won’t be able to break out of these. We’ve made sure of that, and just in case you think of trying, if you were to break them, the cuffs would cut your wrists, and the lead would enter your bloodstream.”

“And what’s to stop me from leaping right through the roof right now?” Rhea asked.

“You make one move, and I will shoot you,” Mon-el promised.

Rhea smirked, “You wouldn’t shoot me.”

“Don’t test me.”

Rhea reached out and grabbed a glowing cyllinder off the table behind her, “See?”

“Mon-el,” Kara warned lowly.

“You won’t shoot me,” Rhea smiled before taking a step closer to Lena. “You _can’t_ shoot me.”

“Don't you—“ Kara moved towards her, and Mon-el stuck an arm out, slowing her for a moment just as J’onn’s voice shouted, “Get down!” and a gunshot ricochetted off the ceiling of the lab before piercing a nearby wall as he tackled the security guard that had fired the shot to the ground.

Kara pushed Mon-el off of her from where he had crouched down, pulling her with him. Her eyes widened as Rhea recovered from her own dive, one hand holding the cylinder, the other wrapped around the waist of an unconscious brunette.

“Lena,” Kara let out a shaky breath as the DEO agents sprung back to their feet, catching up to the aliens’ movements, their guns drawn, causing the security guards to raise their own once more. “Let her go…”

“And why would I do that?” Rhea asked, her arm moving from around Lena’s waist, up her chest, until her fingers wound their way around her neck. She picked her up high enough so that her feet were dangling above the ground, her fingers visibly tightening against pale skin.

“Let her go!” Kara demanded, red filling her vision as her eyes burned pleasantly.

“Unh-unh-unh,” Rhea shook her head. “I wouldn’t do that, if I were you. Unless, you believe you can control those little laser eyes of yours with pinpoint accuracy, and unless you believe you can reach me faster than I can snap her little neck.”

“Kara?” Alex’s whisper sounded unsure, asking for a cue towards their next move.

“Humans are just so…fragile,” Rhea smiled, dragging a nail along the side of Lena’s throat, leaving an angry red mark in its wake.

“If you hurt her…”

“Her safety, is entirely in your hands now, Supergirl.”

“What do you want?” Mon-el broke in.

“To walk away.”

"That's not happening."

“Let the actual leaders here speak, darling,” Rhea replied.

“I am—“ he raised his gun.

“No!” Kara struck her hand down against his wrist, causing the gun to fall from his hands.

“Let me go,” Rhea instructed.

“W-we can’t do that.”

Rhea's hand moved from Lena's neck to her shoulder, squeezing easily. Kara's eyesight zeroed in on the movement, her x-ray vision giving her a front row seat to the moment Lena's collarbone snapped in half under Rhea's grip.

"Lena!" she yelled out as Lena jerked awake for a moment, a cry of pain on her lips, before passing back out.

“Stop it!” Kara demanded, the air before her distorted with the levels of heat emitting from her eyes as she used all of her will to hold her heat vision back. A tear escaped, sizzling as it fell down her cheek. "You can have what you want, just please, stop it!”

“Supergirl,” J’onn looked at her in worry.

“You can go,” Kara nodded, "just don’t hurt her anymore.”

“Supergirl, you do not—“

“Stand down,” Kara called over her shoulder.

“You do not have the authority to make such decisions.”

“I have a shot,” an agent’s voice whispered.

“No!" Kara snapped.

“Take it,” J’onn countered.

Rhea raised an eyebrow, her hand around Lena’s throat once more.

“I said stand down!” Kara spun around, disarming the agent, her eyes flashing in warning as she stared down each of the agents with glowing red eyes.

The room suddenly lit up in a yellowish glow, and Kara looked over her shoulder to find the transport beam to the Daxamite ship surrounding Lena and Rhea before she felt herself being knocked to the ground.

“Take the shot!”

Gunfire rang throughout the lab as various glass containers and cabinet doors shattered.

“Stop! Stop! Stop!” Kara struggled against the body on top of her before she was able to gain some leverage, her hand closing dangerously around his throat as she shoved him away just enough so that she could see his face. “Mon-el?”

“I couldn’t let her just get away.”

"How could you do that?" Kara let go of him before she slammed her fist into the ground beneath her, leaving a dent in the concrete, “They could have hit her, and we wouldn’t know!”

“How could you let my mother go?!”

“We don’t sacrifice innocent people, remember? If you think your mother wouldn’t have killed Lena just to deal one final blow while she could—“

“But that would have been it!” he exclaimed as Kara shoved him off of her. “It would have been over!”

“We don’t sacrifice innocents,” Kara repeated, sending a glare towards J’onn who gave a slight nod, despite his frown.

“You’re too close to it,” Mon-el crossed his arms over his chest. “You get too emotional when people you care about are involved.”

Kara’s jaw dropped, “Did you seriously just say I am too emotional to do my job?”

“If it had been one of Lena’s security guards, instead of her, you wouldn’t have hesitated. I just think that maybe, sometimes—“

“You are not going to finish that statement,” Alex replied as she stepped between them.

“This is not about you,” Mon-el frowned.

“You made it about me when you began questioning the ability of my top agent in front of the rest of my squad,” Alex replied. “So, why don’t you go cool off in the van outside?”

“I think, maybe, I’ll find my own way back, instead.”

“I think that’s for the best,” J’onn agreed as he stood beside Alex.

Kara watched as he walked out of the room before deflating as J’onn and Alex turned to her, “Do you think she was hit?”

“They were gone before the first bullet,” J’onn assured her.

Kara took a shaky breath, and Alex placed a steadying hand on her arm. Kara leaned into her touch ever so slightly, before regarding them with a determined stare, “So…what’s the plan?”

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Lena groaned as she slowly pushed herself up into a sitting position, before raising her hand up to her head to try and ease the pounding.

“Good, you’re awake,” a familiar voice greeted, and Lena bolted upright, causing another pained groan to tumble from her lips. "You may want to move carefully. The medic on board fused your collarbone. You'll find he did a better job than any doctor on your planet surely could. The medicine he gave you will prevent you from feeling anything for as long as you take it slow. Once it runs out, though, well...no need to worry about that. We'll keep you painfree for as long as necessary." 

“Rhea,” Lena frowned, trying to keep up with the woman as she moved about the room. Her vision taking a moment to focus. “What did you do?”

“Nothing more than what we talked about,” Rhea shook her head.

Lena looked around the room carefully. She could tell immediately from the design scheme that she wasn’t in any room created on Earth. She eventually turned back to the other woman, feeling her eyes on her, gauging her reaction. “Why am I on your ship?”

Rhea let out a slow sigh, her shoulders falling, “I didn’t have much of a choice, and I am sorry that things had to go down the way they did. I did not mean to make it seem like I was betraying you or your hard work in anyway.”

“What do you mean you didn’t have a choice?” Lena pushed before freezing. “Supergirl was there. She showed up to stop you. Rhea, what are you up to?”

“All I ever wanted was to get my son back, to get my family back, and to go home. But she…that girl ruined everything. She brainwashed my son, and turned him against me. She blinded him to the truth. And when I tried to talk sense into him, she attacked my ship and kidnapped him.”

Lena couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled from her lips, “Supergirl? She isn’t some boy crazed she-devil, Rhea. You have to be mistaken.”

"You were there, Lena. You saw Supergirl show up for no reason. We were only working in the lab, working on the portal, the final piece. And she came in, trying to destroy it.”

Lena’s forehead creased as she tried to recall what had happened. She remembered Supergirl walking in. She remembered her reaching out. She remembered…a fight? A gun? She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts, “Rhea, I know Supergirl. She’s good. She would never hurt anyone unnecessarily.”

“You don’t know her like I do,” Rhea replied lowly. “You don’t know where she comes from like I do. Her family. How she was raised. Kryptonians always, always looked down on my people. They thought we were beneath them, and used every opportunity they could to prove it. Supergirl was raised on Krypton. That kind of hatred was taught since birth. You don’t get rid of that.”

"Rhea, Supergirl is…” 

_You are nothing like your mother._

“She’s one of the least prejudice people I know. She could never blindly hate anyone.”

"Are you saying I'm lying?" Rhea raised a questioning eyebrow.

Lena swallowed, picking up on the dangerous lilt at the end of the question, “No, of course not. I’m just saying there must be some reasonable explanation for all of this.”

“Is there? Is there a reasonable explanation in why she barged into your private lab without permission? In why she was so blinded by her rage that she threw you to the ground to get to me? That she didn’t care that I took you—a mere human—with me—a dangerous alien in her eyes—as long as I left my son behind? That doesn’t sound very noble to me,” Rhea looked at her sympathetically. “Though, I suppose it was only a matter of time...”

“A matter of time before what?” Lena eyed her skeptically.

“Before she turned her back on you. You are a Luthor, after all. To a Super, you would never be very high on the list of importance.”

Lena’s breath hitched.

“She will never truly care about you, Lena, because she would never truly trust you. Not like I do. You are too smart to not see the truth in that.”

+++

Lena stared at the closed off window in her room, her hand feeling around the edge, looking for a button or a switch to open it, wondering if they were merely hovering above National City or light years away by now. Anything to keep her mind off of Rhea’s words. She knew Rhea was wrong. That Rhea was the one with the vendetta against Supergirl, and not the other way around. But yet…

The idea of Supergirl leaving her to be taken by Rhea was still painful. She’d thought…she’d been so sure…

_I will always protect you._

Kara had vowed to always protect Lena, and Lena had been so sure that Kara was Supergirl. There were so many signs. It was the only thing that made sense, and yet…here she was. Was it all a lie? Was Kara merely getting close to her to keep an eye on her? To make sure she wasn’t going to turn out like her brother?

_Lex._

Lex had been so sure about Superman. Countless times he had been so sure about Superman’s identity, about his capabilities, about how he would turn on the world, and yet...Was she turning into her brother? Becoming so obsessed with a Super that she would twist reality to fit some elaborate scheme? Maybe she was wrong about Kara being Supergirl. Maybe the reporter was just a reporter, and she had meant what she said, only there wasn’t much a reporter—no matter how talented—could do against an alien in a heavily armored spaceship. 

No, Supergirl wasn’t coming for her. Not anymore. And this was far over Kara Danvers’ head. It looked like Lena would have to save herself from this mess, all on her own.

++++

The red dress had been delivered with little ceremony, only an instruction by a member of the ship’s crew that she were to put it on. Lena had examined the fabric closely, looking for wires, smelling for chemicals, basically checking for any indication that this was some kind of trap. When nothing came up, she sighed and changed into the outfit, deciding that for now, it would be best for her to play along, to try and stay on Rhea’s good side while she determined the best course of action. 

When the crew member came back with a large chest piece made of red wire, Lena had started to protest.

“It is a gift,” the crew member explained. “From Queen Rhea, herself. It would mean a lot to her if you wore it.”

“I don’t feel comfortable accepting such a thing,” Lena replied.

“Please, the Queen insists,” she stepped forward.

“I’m sorry,” Lena shook her head.

The crew member pulled a small remote out of her pocket, and pressed a red button on it. Lena’s hands immediately shot up in front of her, her wrists being forced together by some kind of current. She bit down the yelp at the pain that shot across her upper chest, breathing heavily through her nose as she eyed the silver bracelets adorning each arm. They had been there since she woke up. Rhea, or one of the crew, must’ve put them on while she was knocked out.

“I insist,” the crew member forced a smile, and Lena struggled to break her hands apart to no avail as the wired collar was place over her head and wrapped around her torso. 

“What is this?” Lena demanded through gritted teeth.

“A gift,” the other woman replied evenly. “Queen Rhea wore it to her own wedding.”

“Wedding?”

++++

The bracelets could emit electrical shocks as well, as Lena found out when two large guards were escorting her down a long hall. They walked her right past an open window, and Lena stopped, her heart speeding up at the sight of light blue skies outside. 

_We’re still on Earth._

Several small aircrafts sped past the window, and Lena moved to step closer to get a better look. They had looked nothing like any of the aircrafts they had on Earth. When she neared the window, though, a guard pressed a button, and Lena yelped as a strong shock ran up the length of her arms.

“Don’t get any ideas,” a guard chuckled. “You step one foot off this ship, and those bracelets will blow your arms off.”

Lena gulped, and allowed herself to be led down the hall, stumbling as they pushed her faster than her legs were capable of moving, and grabbing on to the guard’s cloak as she fell. He lifted her up with one, and she gave a sheepish smile, holding his gaze as she bit her lip, “Sorry.”

The remote control was slipped into the small pocket of her dress while both guards were busy looking at other parts of her body. Lena figured, if Rhea insisted on leaving her so exposed, she might as well put it to good use.

+++

Of course Rhea’s son was Mike.

 _Mon-El,_ she corrected herself. _You’re sounding like Lex again._

But Lena shook her head. Mon-El was Mike. And he was Supergirl’s girlfriend, meaning Supergirl is Kara. Kara is Supergirl. Lena was right. Lena was abandoned.

She swallowed hard as Rhea explained the intricacies of the ceremony to the pair of them. Mon-El stood there, back straight, chin up. Lena couldn’t help but think that Lillian would approve of him. If he weren’t an alien, that is. 

“Supergirl is coming,” Mon-El assured in a hurried whisper as Rhea walked across the room. “She only sent me here to buy more time. They’re trying to figure out a way to teleport into the ship from the outside.

Lena nodded. She wasn’t sure if she believed him. If she trusted him. Maybe Supergirl was coming. If nothing else, then to save her boyfriend. And maybe she would have time to save Lena to. The will she or won't she of it all wouldn't really matter in the end, though, unless Lena was able to deactivate the bracelets in time. She raised her wrists at Mon-El with a raised eyebrow.

With the way he winced, Lena had a feeling the foreign word that escaped his lips was a curse, and that he wouldn’t be of any help to her. 

+++

It was a bathroom break that did it, or at least, Lena hoped it did. Pre-wedding jitters granted her a trip to a restroom with the most advanced looking toilet she had ever scene. She used a heel to pry open the back panel, and began pulling from the wires and circuits. She couldn’t break into the bracelets, but she could rig the remote to reverse the currents, and if she could push them close enough together, it could be enough to fry the bracelets. Hopefully without causing them to detonate. Hopefully.

+++

As Lena walked down the aisle, she realized, this was it. Supergirl wasn’t coming. There was no rescue this time. What was one marriage to a Superhero with the world on her shoulders? Lena pulled her shoulders back until the wire from the cage-like necklace dug into them. She could do this. She could marry this man. Buy herself more time. Find a pod. Fry the bracelet. Escape. She was used to doing things all on her own, anyway. Leaning so much on Kara and Supergirl over the past year had caused her to become complacent. But not anymore.

 _Kara is Supergirl_ , Lena reminded herself. _And she’s breaking her promise._

+++

Mon-El was in the middle of reciting his vows when she heard the fight break out. Lena stood there for a moment, frozen in shock before yanking her hand free from Mon-El’s, watching as Supergirl burst through the door. 

“How did you—“ Rhea began as Supergirl’s eyes darted between Lena and Mon-El.

Supergirl held her hand out, “Lena.”

“I wouldn’t if I were you, Lena,” Rhea smiled knowingly. “One step out of this ship, and those cuffs detonate. There won’t be anything left of you to save.”

Supergirl froze before flying towards Lena at superspeed as Lena pulled out the remote control and activated the current in the cuffs. She tried to bring her wrists together, but the current pushing them apart was to strong.

“Help me,” Lena looked up at the hero as Mon-El did his best to hold off his mother. 

“Are you sure it’s safe?”

“Trust me.”

Supergirl nodded, and took Lena’s wrists in her hands, forcing them together despite the current trying to keep them apart. The bracelets sparked white hot before the current died out, and the bracelets fell from her wrists. Supergirl’s eyes widened at the red marks on Lena’s wrists before she wrapped her arms around her tightly, bringing her to her chest.

Lena felt the floor drop out from under her, and when her feet hit the ground again, it was much more gently than she had been expecting.

“Are you okay?” Supergirl's eyes darted over her at lightning speed as she stepped away enough to really take her in. They paused over Lena's wrists and then again over her collarbone, narrowing slightly. “Do you think you need a doctor? I can fly one in faster than you can blink. Well...maybe not that fast, but really fast,” she rambled, the nerves evident in her voice.

Lena blinked rapidly, adjusting to the sudden change of location. Her gaze landed on the red and gold crest displayed strongly before her, “Y-you came for me.”

“Of course, I came for you,” Supergirl’s eyebrows knitted together in confusion, her hands remaining under Lena’s elbows, providing a steady sense of support as she got her bearings. “I promised I’d always protect you. But you…Lena, that was amazing. What you did with those cuffs was incredible. How did you…” her voice trailed off and her eyes widened in realization.

“It _is_ you.”

“I-I-“ Kara struggled as Lena placed her hands on Kara’s forearms, sliding along the deep blue fabric of her suit. “I have to—“

“Save Mon-El,” Lena nodded.

“Lena, I—“

“It’s okay,” she gave her arms a gentle squeeze. “Go. I’m…I’m not going anywhere.”

The relieved smile that broke across Kara’s face was enough for Lena to break into one a grin of her own, as she gave her arms one last squeeze for good measure before letting go and allowing Kara to dart to across the room over to a large control panel, her hands moving faster than Lena’s eyes could keep up with as they darted over buttons that were imprinted with symbols rather than letters or words.

 _Kryptonian_ , Lena realized as she stepped closer. The symbols were of Kara’s native language. Her fingertips grazed across the cool metal top of the panel as she took in the room around her for the first time. Ice walls rose hundreds of feet into the air all around her, encapsulating them in a fortress. Her lips parted in awe, and something pulled within her chest.

“This…this is…” 

“It’s Clark’s Fortress of Solitude,” Kara explained, frowning down as the panel before her emitted a harsh buzzing sound in reply to her efforts. “Well, mine too, I guess. You will be safe here while I go back up to the ship.”

“Kara, you brought me…” Her chest felt tight as the tell-tale sting of tears burned behind her eyes. “But I’m a _Luthor_.”

Kara’s attention snapped back to her at that, “You are. You are a Luthor. And a scientist. And a CEO. And a hero. And a genius. And you are my friend. You are my friend, Lena, and I trust you, and I can’t stand the thought of anything happening to you. So, yes, I brought you, a Luthor, here. I’d do _anything_ to keep you safe.”

The emphasis on ‘anything’ had Lena tilting her head just as faint noise of vibration filled the air around them as the room lit up yellow for a moment, two bodies joining them in the fortress. 

“Mother?” Lena asked in confusion as Lillian stood there, helping to support the weight of a large green man. An alien. Her mother was seemingly helping an alien. _The_ Martian Manhunter, if Lena was identifying him correctly. Lillian Luthor was helping the Martian Manhunter.

“What happened?” Kara demanded worriedly as she rushed over to the pair. “Were you able to place the bomb?”

Lena’s chest tightened even further as Supergirl rushed to her friend's side, working with her mother to help him over to a chair by the control panel. The control panel in the Fortress of Solitude. 

“Yes, but the detonator got destroyed when I was trying to get him out of there.”

Kara froze, “You…you saved him?”

So Kara clearly did not trust her mother, yet…here she was. In the one place no Luthor had ever been. Supergirl had brought Lillian Luthor to the Fortress of Solitude. _For me,_ Lena stumbled backwards. Kara had brought her mother there, for her. Her mother who had drained Kara of her powers. Her mother who had bled Kara. Her mother who had brought a man back to life and gave him a heart made of kryptonite for the express purpose of killing Kara and her last remaining blood relative. Kara had let Lillian Luthor into the Fortress of Solitude, and it was all Lena’s fault. 

The wired cage around her chest began to feel restricting, and Lena slid her fingers beneath it to try and pry it away, only to find that the metal would not budge. “No…” She whispered.

“Of course, I saved him,” Lillian scoffed. “We are being invaded by aliens, and he is an 8 foot tall warrior that fights for my side. You’d think I’d leave that valuable of a weapon behind?”

Kara’s jaw clenched, but she didn’t reply, instead, focusing on the man before her as he came back around.

The word _invaded_ echoed throughout Lena’s mind.

“The good news is, I destroyed whatever it was they were using on him, so that’s one less roadblock we have to worry about.”

“Thank you,” Kara nodded, before turning back to the panel. “I need to go back for Mon-El,” she touched her hand to her ear, “Winn? I’m having trouble making the connection back up to the ship. Is there anything you can do?”

Lena took another step back, bumping into an ice pillar lurching upwards from the ground behind her. Those ships she had caught sight of briefly, they were ships from Daxam. Ships _she_ had brought over. Her world was being invaded, and it was all her fault. Because she was too weak to see through Rhea’s approval, too stupid to realize that she, on her own, was not worth the effort Rhea had put into her, that there had to have been an ulterior motive. All of this was happening because she was too insecure to wait even a day before accepting Rhea’s proposal, too hell bent on doing good and proving she was better than her brother to think clearly. 

“No, no, no…” Lena gasped, feeling as if the cage were squeezing around her midsection, each breath she pulled in becoming shorter than the last.

“What do you mean they patched the hole?” Kara replied angrily.

“We knew this would happen,” the Martian’s voice came out hoarse, but steady. “Once we got in there, we knew it was only a matter of time before they’d discover us, and realize there was a vulnerability in their code. That’s why I told you to be prepared to choose.”

Lena met Lillian’s gaze from across the room, her eyes settling on the familiar stare, the narrowed eyes, the pursed lips, the utter look of disappointment, and this time Lena let it wash over her. She let it seep into her bones, knowing that she deserved it, knowing that this was all her fault, that she put millions of lives in danger, all because she thought she was above failure, above the limits of humanity, that she could save everyone.

But she couldn’t save anyone. She’d been too blinded by her own ambitions to see the potential harm she was bringing about on those around her.

 _I_ am _Lex_ , she realized in horror, a high-pitched wheezing sound escaping her throat as she clawed at the red cage framing her torso, needing it off of her, unable to breathe under the weight of it as Lillian stared her down with disgust from across the room, her legs wobbling beneath her.

“Lena!” Kara’s voice echoed loudly throughout the fortress, and a set of strong hands found purchase beneath her elbows once more, and Lena found herself floating, floating away from Lillian’s gaze and the control panel with the Kryptonian writing and the Martian Manhunter where he sat slumped in a chair because of her. The back of her arms pressed against the shocking cold of ice as Kara brought her to the farthest corner of the fortress, away from all of the eyes and the ears and the evidence of her wrongdoings. “Lena? Hey…hey, it’s me. Stay with me.”

“I can’t,” Lena shook her head frantically, as she tugged on the cage. “I can’t breathe.”

Kara’s fingers quickly wove themselves in between metal wires, and with two quick pulls, the wedding accessory fell to the floor in pieces. “You’re okay,” Kara reached out and tilted her face upward, getting her to look at her. “You’re okay. It’s gone. You’re safe now. I promise. Just breathe,” she placed a flat palm on Lena’s chest. “Breathe.”

The warmth of Kara’s hand spread across her skin like the beginnings of a fire tracing a path across a layer of tinder. Her own heartbeat seemed to reverberate around her as it echoed against the palm of Kara’s hand.

“Nice and easy,” Kara nodded, unwavering as she held Lena’s gaze with her own. “There you go.”

The first full breath of air Lena was able to pull in was used to mutter out a shaky, “Why?” as Kara stood before her, cloaked in red and blue, taking the time to calm her down while there was an alien invasion occurring right this very minute because of her.

“Why what?” Kara asked, her hand moving back to Lena’s elbow, a barely there reminder that Lena was in fact here, with her, safe. 

“Would you choose me?”

“Because I promised you,” Kara replied without hesitation. 

“I’m sorry,” Lena shook her head. “You shouldn’t have done that.”

“I don’t regret it,” she insisted surely.

“Kara, this is all my fault,” Lena felt the tears pooling in her eyes and did nothing to try and stop them this time. “I—I built that portal. I designed it. I—I, well, I didn’t create it, Rhea had a rough draft of what she was looking for, but I…” Lena’s voice trailed off as her eyes fell to the family crest displayed before her once more. They travelled upwards to find Kara watching her, patiently and with the utmost care, and her stomach dropped, “No…Kara, no…”

“What? What’s wrong?”

“She didn’t need me for the design. Rhea is an alien from a planet far more advanced than Earth. I am not smarter than she is. I was not capable of doing any of the work I did without her. I…”

“No, Lena, Rhea was raised as a royal, she’s not as—“

“No, it was you. She only used me to get to you…and you let her. You played right into what she wanted. Kara, why would you do that?” she questioned in desperate exasperation.

“Lena, I will always protect you,” Kara vowed. “I will always save you.”

“Can’t you see I don’t deserve it?” Lena choked out, the first warm tear trailing a path down her cheek.

“Of course you—“

“I don’t,” she insisted. “At all. Look around you. Look at what I’ve done. I started an invasion. I got you to bring a Luthor into the Fortress of Solitude. I made you leave Mon-El behind in the hands of that awful woman. You…you brought my mother here where your last reminders of your home lay, where you are your most vulnerable because you have the most to lose, and you did it because of me. I…I’ve made you vulnerable to my mother, to Rhea…I’ve weakened out entire planet. _I_ did that.”

“That’s not tru—“

“How can you say that I deserve to be saved when all I’ve ever done is put everyone around me at risk?” she questioned shakily through her tears. “I am just as bad as Lex.”

Kara’s grip tightened on her arm, “Lena, you are nothing like your brother or your mom. You are so good and so warm. I’ve never met anyone with as big of a heart as you.”

“I will break you,” Lena gulped. “I break everything I touch. Everyone I care about. They all break in the end. You will too.”

“You will not break me,” Kara insisted, her hands reaching up to cradle Lena’s face once more. Her thumbs soothed across her cheeks, wiping her tears away. “I’m made of steel, remember?”

“Kara…”

“Lena, you are a brilliant, talented, world-renowned scientist…but you are wrong. About everything. Being here in this fortress does not make me vulnerable. Having your mother here does not put me in danger. This is part of my home. It builds me up. It makes me stronger. You, Lena, you make me stronger.”

“Kara—“

Kara reached down and took Lena’s hand, bringing it up to place against the crest on her suit, “It’s the insignia for the House of El. It stands for our family motto, _El mayarah_ , which means ‘Stronger together.’ Caring about someone does not make you weak. It makes you stronger. It fortifies you. It drives you to do better, to try harder, to reach higher. Lena Luthor, you are not a vulnerability,” Kara swore as she gave her hand a careful squeeze. “You are a strength, and I need you. We all need you. You’ll see. You will help us win this war. We need that brilliant mind of yours will help us against Daxam’s technology, and we need that enormous heart of yours to help strengthen us in even the hardest of times. We need you, Lena. _I_ need you. 

“And not just for this war, either,” Kara shook her head, the corners of her lips curving in a soft smile. “I will still need you after. I need you, by my side, making me laugh, and helping me decompress, and making me feel normal. I need that. I need _you._ Please…”

Lena looked down to where her hand was pressed against Supergirl’s crest, and Kara relaxed her grip, allowing Lena’s fingers to hesitantly trace their way around the symbol. 

" _El mayarah_ ,” she tried, mimicking Kara’s intonation as best as she could before looking up to find Kara’s eyes sparkling.

“ _El mayarah_ ,” Kara nodded with a beaming grin, and Lena drew a stuttering breath at the feeling of the Kryptonian’s heart racing beneath her fingertips.


End file.
